Haberdashers' Boys' School 11 plus guide

Are you thinking about applying to Haberdashers' Boys' School (Habs Boys) for 11+ entry? Find out everything you need to know about the admissions process and how to prepare for the entrance exam.

Key information for Haberdashers' Boys' School

• School type: boys' independent day school
• Location: Elstree, Hertfordshire
• Admissions contact: admissionsboys@habselstree.org.uk
• 11+ exam: Quest Admissions assessment and creative writing
• Financial assistance: means-tested bursaries
• Scholarships: academic, art, design technology, drama, music and sport

Important dates for 2027 entry

• Friday 6th November 2026: registration and scholarship application deadline
• Thursday 19th November 2026: bursary application deadline
• Friday 20th November 2026: first round assessment
• Friday 8th to Friday 15th January 2027: second round assessment (interviews)
• Friday 12th February 2027: offers sent out by email
• Thursday 25th February 2027: offer holder event
• Wednesday 3rd March 2027 (9am): deadline for accepting offers

How to apply to Haberdashers' Boys' School

Habs Boys is selective. This means that your child will need to take an entrance exam to be eligible for a place.

You must register your child for Year 7 entry via the school website. Registration closes in early November of the year before entry, and a non-refundable registration fee applies.

Boys applying for a scholarship or bursary must also complete the relevant application by the published deadlines, alongside their standard registration.

Habs Boys uses a first round assessment provided by Quest Admissions, which includes a creative writing paper. This takes place in November when your child is in Year 6.

Boys who perform well in the first round are invited back for a second round in January, which includes an informal interview alongside a chance for parents to meet the school's leadership team.

You will receive your child's results by email in February. If they are offered a place, you will have until early March to accept.

What will my child be tested on?

The Habs Boys 11+ entrance exam is a paper assessment split into four parts, sat in one sitting.

Part 1: Quest Admissions assessment

The first round is a paper assessment created by Quest Admissions. This assesses:

• Maths and non-verbal reasoning (45 minutes)
• English and verbal reasoning (40 minutes)
• Creative comprehension (20 minutes)

Maths and English questions are based on the Key Stage 2 National Curriculum and are multiple choice. Calculators, dictionaries and mobile devices cannot be used, but paper and pencils are provided for working out.

Part 2: Creative writing

The second part is a 20-minute creative writing task.

How are places decided?

Around half of the boys who sit the first round assessment are invited back for a second round in January. This includes an informal interview, during which your child won't need to bring anything with them.

Parents are also invited to attend on the same day, for an informal opportunity to meet members of the school's leadership team.

Offers are sent out by email in February. These are based on:

• performance in the first round assessment
• the second round interview

If your child is offered a place, you'll be invited to an offer holder event before accepting.

Financial information

Haberdashers' Boys' School is a fee-paying school. Take a look at the school website for a full breakdown of fees per year group.

Financial assistance

When exploring independent schools for your child, scholarships and bursaries are worth considering. They can ease the pressure of school fees and open doors to opportunities that might otherwise feel out of reach.

Scholarships

Scholarships are awarded for a child's talent or achievement. Habs Boys offers scholarships in academic ability, art, design technology, drama, music and sport.

Scholarships often come with a small fee reduction and acknowledge your child's talents, motivating them and boosting their confidence. It's possible to hold a scholarship and receive bursary support at the same time.

Visit Haberdashers' Boys' School's website to see the scholarships available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Your guide to independent school scholarships.

Bursaries

Bursaries are means-tested awards (based on a family's financial situation) designed to make independent education more accessible. At Habs Boys, awards range from partial fee contributions up to a fully-funded place, along with support towards items like uniform, coach travel and music lessons.

Families provide financial information to qualify, and awards are reassessed each year. For many families, bursaries make an excellent education possible that might otherwise seem out of reach.

Visit Haberdashers' Boys' School's website to find out what bursaries are available and how to apply.

For more information, read: Bursaries: a parents' guide

How can I help my child prepare for the test?

Applying to senior school can feel like a big milestone, but preparation doesn't have to be overwhelming. Here's how you can help your child prepare for test day.

Stay on track with a clear plan

One of the hardest parts of exam preparation is knowing what to focus on, when, and how to make steady progress without it taking over family life.

A clear, structured plan helps your child feel less overwhelmed and more in control. It ensures they build skills in the right order, cover everything they need, and avoid last-minute cramming.

Atom's exam plan makes this easier. Enter your child's target schools and exam dates, and we'll create a personalised weekly plan tailored to the topics they'll be tested on. It shows them what to work on and when, adapts as they improve, and helps them build progress in a calm, manageable way — little and often.

That means less guesswork for you, less stress for them, and a clearer path all the way to exam day.

Build smart exam technique

As your child's knowledge grows, practice tests can help them feel more comfortable with the real exam format.

Atom's mock tests are exact replicas of real entrance exams. They're also unlimited — your child can take the same test repeatedly and see new questions each time. This helps them practise without repeating the same content.

Atom's mock tests are automatically marked. You'll see your child's standardised age score (SAS), where they're doing well, and what they should focus on next. You'll also learn how they compare to other children applying to the same school.

Encourage regular reading

Strong reading skills play a big role in preparation for entrance exams.

Encourage your child to read every day, even for just 10–15 minutes. The key is variety. Mix fiction and non-fiction, different genres, and a range of authors. This helps them become more confident in understanding tone, purpose, and meaning across different texts.

Over time, regular reading will:

• broaden their vocabulary
• improve comprehension and inference
• build confidence in tackling unseen texts

And just as importantly, it can help them enjoy reading — not just see it as exam preparation.

Looking for inspiration? Atom's reading and writing starter kit has suggestions spanning fiction and non-fiction for Years 3–6.

Celebrate progress, not just scores

When you're supporting your child through exam preparation, what really matters is knowing they're moving in the right direction — not just how they scored on a single test.

Atom's progress tracking gives you a clear, simple picture of how your child is doing in each topic and the direction they're moving in. You can see where they're on track, where they might need more practice, and spot progress as it happens.

That makes it easier to give meaningful encouragement, keep motivation steady, and focus on what matters most: consistent improvement, not just one-off results.